After a short hiatus, I am back on blogging arena. I recently enrolled in 2 part time courses in a near-by community college. I had to accustom myself to the new change in my daily chores which explains why my "blogosphere" went to a hibernate mode. I have taken up a course in Marketing and the other in Journalism, both of which I was keen on learning from a tutor to make my skills more professional.
The marketing course I am currently studying gives an insight on how a company should view the market place, understand the needs, wants of customers, marketing environment that can affect the business, buying behavior of the customers etc. Well, I don't want to go more technical into the subject. All I can say at this stage is am lovin' it. So, if you or your organization needs a marketing manager, here I am :-).
In journalism, I am pursuing a feature writing course. I could say, I have to start from learning the alphabet in journalism. I am happy that, I have a wonderful instructor who makes learning, writing more passionate. I am learning a lot from this course. The very first lesson I learnt was, the job of a reporter is to get the news right, keeping it objective, targeting the news and not the news-makers(who-so-ever it could be). Unfortunately this principle is hardly followed these days. When you read a movie review, you see the reviewer saying a word or two about the actor. An actor plays a great role in making a movie good. But an actor is not responsible if the movie turns out a box-office disaster.
From now on, I have decided to post my feature stories. I wish you guys could highlight my positives, mistakes and help me take corrective measures.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
2 States in Marriage
I recently completed reading Chetan Bhagat's newest book "2 States". One thing I feel like appreciating about this guy is that, no matter whatever he writes, he duly admits that he sticks to his protocol.
All his books are titled with a number. 5 point someone to 2 states.The male protagonist in the book bears one of the several names of Lord Krishna.
His books are always priced 95 bucks which provides an access to a large section of the society.
It begins with 2 students from 2 different states in India, (one of the several factors considered in Indian marriages), falling in love. I feel, it is a must read for people in love and their families, especially applicable to the ones, belonging to different states, caste, etc... The story goes about their attempts in converting their love to a fruitful marriage. Easier said than done, the Tam Brahm girl and the Punjabi boy realize it is no incing on the cake convincing both sides.
When a guy proposes to his girl-friend for marriage, he must ask her - "Do you speak my language? Are you from my state? If yes, will you marry me?"
I wonder how many Ananyas and Krishs in our country have to face a similar situation everyday! However, not all undergo this. But their percentage is far less compared to the former. In the era of globalization when different cultures, economies, societies are integrating, and denationalization is becoming a trend, why should Ananyas and Krishs have to suffer in the process of the marriage.
Mile Sur Mera Tumhara To Sur Bane Hamaara!
Nearly all Indians during the early 1990s who had access to televisions at home must have listened to this wonderful "National Integration" song at least once. Moreover with limited or no access to Cable TV, and DD1 the only source of entertainment, one would hardly want to miss this program. Agar mera sur aur tumhara sur nahi milega to hamaara sur kaise banega??
When a guy proposes to his girl-friend for marriage, he must ask her - "Do you speak my language? Are you from my state? If yes, will you marry me?"
I wonder how many Ananyas and Krishs in our country have to face a similar situation everyday! However, not all undergo this. But their percentage is far less compared to the former. In the era of globalization when different cultures, economies, societies are integrating, and denationalization is becoming a trend, why should Ananyas and Krishs have to suffer in the process of the marriage.
Mile Sur Mera Tumhara To Sur Bane Hamaara!
Nearly all Indians during the early 1990s who had access to televisions at home must have listened to this wonderful "National Integration" song at least once. Moreover with limited or no access to Cable TV, and DD1 the only source of entertainment, one would hardly want to miss this program. Agar mera sur aur tumhara sur nahi milega to hamaara sur kaise banega??
I feel, the multiple language system in India is more of a bane than a boon. It is high time we became less chauvinistic about region, language etc and developed the feeling of Indian-ness. The book "2 States" is more of an educative than an entertaining one, thanks to Mr. Bhagat!
Friday, March 19, 2010
Pursuit of Dreams
After 24 years of my life, I wonder how many years have I spent leading my life the way I wished!
Dil hai chhota sa chhoti si aasha :-)
Undoubtedly, this is one of the most meaningful songs I have ever heard. Nearly twenty years old, I find this number so fresh and everytime I listen, it reverberates in me - What are you doing to chase your dreams? Our lives are so heavily filled with desires. But I wonder, how many of us dare to fulfill them.
I feel most of us are trapped in the boundaries laid by our ancestors, society that is constantly watching us, fear that, we may see ourselves in the extreme left of a success measuring scale in the pursuit of our dreams. We fail to understand that, we are forgoing our happiness making our lives more miserable in not crossing the red-boundaries. We are letting our dreams wither away in leading the monotonous lives.
I was trying to find answers to a maelstrom of questions continuously bothering me
- what you wanted your life to be?
- how far have you reached from your dreams?
- have you reached a stage where is no looking back?
- given a chance, will you start living your dreams? etc. etc...
If only, for once, we listened to our hearts without giving a damn about the external factors which have been so harsh on us, trying to dictate our lives, making ourselves lose our identities!
Dil hai chhota sa chhoti si aasha :-)
Undoubtedly, this is one of the most meaningful songs I have ever heard. Nearly twenty years old, I find this number so fresh and everytime I listen, it reverberates in me - What are you doing to chase your dreams? Our lives are so heavily filled with desires. But I wonder, how many of us dare to fulfill them.
I feel most of us are trapped in the boundaries laid by our ancestors, society that is constantly watching us, fear that, we may see ourselves in the extreme left of a success measuring scale in the pursuit of our dreams. We fail to understand that, we are forgoing our happiness making our lives more miserable in not crossing the red-boundaries. We are letting our dreams wither away in leading the monotonous lives.
I was trying to find answers to a maelstrom of questions continuously bothering me
- what you wanted your life to be?
- how far have you reached from your dreams?
- have you reached a stage where is no looking back?
- given a chance, will you start living your dreams? etc. etc...
If only, for once, we listened to our hearts without giving a damn about the external factors which have been so harsh on us, trying to dictate our lives, making ourselves lose our identities!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Crisis Management
It is common for anybody to face a crisis. But dealing with the crisis, conquering it is a big challenge. Any crisis be it finance, family, health, or education is bound to hit your confidence levels. By dealing the crisis courageously, you can come out it. Easier said than done, for a person whose confidence levels have nose-dived with the crisis , how really is it possible to face something courageously. More than dealing with the crisis, I guess you should try to boost your confidence levels which could help overcome any barrier. Few things like, remembering one's past, being in the company of people who admire you for what you are can offer a great help.
I strongly feel your past plays a vital role in boosting the confidence levels. When you think about some events in your life, be it childhood, school days, college life etc, which made you feel proud about yourself, or others appreciate/notice you, it makes you realize that, you still have those qualities in you which you have forgotten or not realized so far that they are few of the highlighting points in you, and incorporating them in your life will rejuvenate you. Those positives in you for which you were known will definitely help you become the person you were. This kind of self-realization will re-assure you that, you are still the same person, which for some reasons like current circumstances, situation you are in, and people around you to a certain extent might have made you feel low and not be yourself.
When you are doing low in your life, people around you can either be a back-bone or a hindrance to you. At these times, the ones around you mostly de-moralize you by to high-lighting o
nly the negatives in you. One way to deal with them is by giving a deaf ear to what they blurt though it is difficult to do. Instead, if you have somebody who can admire you and can provide you some emotional support, highlight the positives in you, and help you deal with the phase you are in, you can be indebted to them for being your biggest source of strength. Emotional support can conquer any everest-like crisis. If only you had someone like that!!!
I strongly feel your past plays a vital role in boosting the confidence levels. When you think about some events in your life, be it childhood, school days, college life etc, which made you feel proud about yourself, or others appreciate/notice you, it makes you realize that, you still have those qualities in you which you have forgotten or not realized so far that they are few of the highlighting points in you, and incorporating them in your life will rejuvenate you. Those positives in you for which you were known will definitely help you become the person you were. This kind of self-realization will re-assure you that, you are still the same person, which for some reasons like current circumstances, situation you are in, and people around you to a certain extent might have made you feel low and not be yourself.
When you are doing low in your life, people around you can either be a back-bone or a hindrance to you. At these times, the ones around you mostly de-moralize you by to high-lighting o
nly the negatives in you. One way to deal with them is by giving a deaf ear to what they blurt though it is difficult to do. Instead, if you have somebody who can admire you and can provide you some emotional support, highlight the positives in you, and help you deal with the phase you are in, you can be indebted to them for being your biggest source of strength. Emotional support can conquer any everest-like crisis. If only you had someone like that!!!Saturday, January 2, 2010
A Healthy-cook?
It is another new year again. I wish all my blog readers and non-readers a Happy New Year. I wish all your dreams come true :)
A new year signals some new resolutions to be made nevertheless, keeping up is difficult. I had never resolved to take up any task sincerely till last year. It was only in 2009 that, I resolved to be organized in life. I guess, to a certain extent I was. It is quite difficult to be highly organized. However, when considered my previous years of life, I was more organized in 2009. So, this boosted some confidence in me that, I could keep up to my resolution.
Now that, we entered 2010, I had been thinking deeply about making a resolution for this year since yesterday morning. Given my passion for cooking, I decided to become an expert in healthy-vegetarian cooking. I wish I could accomplish my target for this year successfully.
A new year signals some new resolutions to be made nevertheless, keeping up is difficult. I had never resolved to take up any task sincerely till last year. It was only in 2009 that, I resolved to be organized in life. I guess, to a certain extent I was. It is quite difficult to be highly organized. However, when considered my previous years of life, I was more organized in 2009. So, this boosted some confidence in me that, I could keep up to my resolution.
Now that, we entered 2010, I had been thinking deeply about making a resolution for this year since yesterday morning. Given my passion for cooking, I decided to become an expert in healthy-vegetarian cooking. I wish I could accomplish my target for this year successfully.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Transition
Few days after my marriage got fixed, and before I got engaged to my then fiancee, (now husband Ashok), I was talking to him over phone when he came up with some topic.
Wake up call:
He told me that, my then to-be in-laws would be more than happy if I had in future started addressing them Amma & Appa (mom and dad in Kannada) since my relationship with them would be more than just an "aunty & uncle" one, although it wasn't a condition :). So, I stumbled a bit and then told him, that, I would start addressing them that way after engagement. I was quite sure that, my husband would inform them in tact. However, my in-laws never mentioned about it during any of our conversations. I still don't know why I replied in that manner. Nor did I analyze that deeply, like - was I rude, was it because I wasn't matured enough, was it too late after engagement to start addressing them in that way or was it my way of procrastinating the wake up call etc. Well, I guess, most of the girls do come across similar situation, at least if not the same way.
My fiancee and I got engaged. My father-in-law just said casually - "Engagement is over" and didn't say anything. I could quickly understand why he said so and I said - "Yes, I remember my promise (uncle - swallowed) :)". But how to keep up my promise was a million-dollar question. I was comfortable addressing them aunty & uncle. Also, I found it embarrassing, funny, weird, and every odd feeling to start addressing somebody Amma Appa one fine day. Though I was aware that this situation would come up one day in my life, and it was inevitable for any girl, I wasn't prepared for the transition so soon.
The transition:
Version 1.0
Well, I stopped addressing them Aunt and Uncle after getting engaged. But it didn't mean, I had started following the new way. I didn't address them at all for a week or 10 days. More precisely, I neither mentioned aunty & uncle nor Amma & Appa while conversing with them. I found it quite eccentric. But this was again with a purpose. Most importantly, I felt, if I did this, then a day would come when I unknowingly addressed them in the new way.
Version 1.1
Thankfully it didn't take too long for the transition, despite the initial hiccups and few embarrassing moments. My in-laws were kind enough to understand my position and gave me time to get adjusted to the new way, thanks to them. My mother-in-law at one stage even mentioned that, I could stick to my old way if I really had difficulty.
Version 1.2
No doubt, I started addressing them the way they liked, but, it was difficult for me to stick to the new way of addressing in front of my own parents. For few more days, I followed Goto -> version 1.0 when I was around both my parents and in-laws.
The Release
After release, which not really implies marriage, more or less with the passing of time, I came to terms with the new way of addressing. Now, I am glad to say that, it comes naturally with no pause, hiccup, or hesitation :).
Mantra:
Today, I feel, the new addressing method adds a great value to the relationship. In general, I attribute the success of the release to both the girl and the in-laws. The bride must be inclined to get along with her new family. At the same time, in-laws should be patient enough to understand and provide some latitude to their daughters-in-law along the journey :).
Wake up call:
He told me that, my then to-be in-laws would be more than happy if I had in future started addressing them Amma & Appa (mom and dad in Kannada) since my relationship with them would be more than just an "aunty & uncle" one, although it wasn't a condition :). So, I stumbled a bit and then told him, that, I would start addressing them that way after engagement. I was quite sure that, my husband would inform them in tact. However, my in-laws never mentioned about it during any of our conversations. I still don't know why I replied in that manner. Nor did I analyze that deeply, like - was I rude, was it because I wasn't matured enough, was it too late after engagement to start addressing them in that way or was it my way of procrastinating the wake up call etc. Well, I guess, most of the girls do come across similar situation, at least if not the same way.
My fiancee and I got engaged. My father-in-law just said casually - "Engagement is over" and didn't say anything. I could quickly understand why he said so and I said - "Yes, I remember my promise (uncle - swallowed) :)". But how to keep up my promise was a million-dollar question. I was comfortable addressing them aunty & uncle. Also, I found it embarrassing, funny, weird, and every odd feeling to start addressing somebody Amma Appa one fine day. Though I was aware that this situation would come up one day in my life, and it was inevitable for any girl, I wasn't prepared for the transition so soon.
The transition:
Version 1.0
Well, I stopped addressing them Aunt and Uncle after getting engaged. But it didn't mean, I had started following the new way. I didn't address them at all for a week or 10 days. More precisely, I neither mentioned aunty & uncle nor Amma & Appa while conversing with them. I found it quite eccentric. But this was again with a purpose. Most importantly, I felt, if I did this, then a day would come when I unknowingly addressed them in the new way.
Version 1.1
Thankfully it didn't take too long for the transition, despite the initial hiccups and few embarrassing moments. My in-laws were kind enough to understand my position and gave me time to get adjusted to the new way, thanks to them. My mother-in-law at one stage even mentioned that, I could stick to my old way if I really had difficulty.
Version 1.2
No doubt, I started addressing them the way they liked, but, it was difficult for me to stick to the new way of addressing in front of my own parents. For few more days, I followed Goto -> version 1.0 when I was around both my parents and in-laws.
The Release
After release, which not really implies marriage, more or less with the passing of time, I came to terms with the new way of addressing. Now, I am glad to say that, it comes naturally with no pause, hiccup, or hesitation :).
Mantra:
Today, I feel, the new addressing method adds a great value to the relationship. In general, I attribute the success of the release to both the girl and the in-laws. The bride must be inclined to get along with her new family. At the same time, in-laws should be patient enough to understand and provide some latitude to their daughters-in-law along the journey :).
Sunday, December 6, 2009
My update :)
It has been quite sometime since I posted anything here. So, this means, either I am engaged in something else or I have started finding "blogging thing" boring. The latter is not really true. I am still interested in blogging. But of-late I have been quite involved in a number of activities.
I watched few movies, though I didn't like most of them. Watching movies is an activity to a person like me who hadn't really watched movies before. The worst among them was Kurbaan - a completely illogical movie!!! We were three of us sitting together, my husband, my bro-in-law and I. We couldn't stop making fun of the dialogues, scenes, characters in the movie.
I found out that recently that, I enjoy sitting and reading books in a book store than in a library. The ambiance at a book store is splendid. The soft music, internet facility people walking-by, sound of the coffee machines drives me there.
I am excited to share with my readers that, I have started decorating my house now with all home-made craft-work, thanks to my craft teacher who forced me do all the hand-made art-work during my school days. My craft works by no means look professional. But it gives me fun and satisfaction to decorate my house myself. I shall post 2 to 3 pics of the ones I have made in my next post.
Well, that is all for now. Will be back with some pictures in my next post.
I watched few movies, though I didn't like most of them. Watching movies is an activity to a person like me who hadn't really watched movies before. The worst among them was Kurbaan - a completely illogical movie!!! We were three of us sitting together, my husband, my bro-in-law and I. We couldn't stop making fun of the dialogues, scenes, characters in the movie.
I found out that recently that, I enjoy sitting and reading books in a book store than in a library. The ambiance at a book store is splendid. The soft music, internet facility people walking-by, sound of the coffee machines drives me there.
I am excited to share with my readers that, I have started decorating my house now with all home-made craft-work, thanks to my craft teacher who forced me do all the hand-made art-work during my school days. My craft works by no means look professional. But it gives me fun and satisfaction to decorate my house myself. I shall post 2 to 3 pics of the ones I have made in my next post.
Well, that is all for now. Will be back with some pictures in my next post.
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